Members of County Assemblies from Central Kenya region have formed a 20-member committee to lead in formulation of stringent laws to regulate the sale of alcohol in the region.
This was after Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua held consultations with MCAs from the five counties on Friday, on how to end the illicit brew menace in the region.
“We have realised that there is a gap in the law and we urgently need to fix it. We have deliberated to form a 20-member committee that will retreat on the formulation of uniform law in the five counties,” Gachagua said.
“The situation is worrisome. According to the National Campaign against Drug and Abuse Authority (NACADA) Central Kenya is at 14 per cent. We need to come up with laws across the five counties for stringent regulation of alcohol.”
The counties include; Murang’a, Kiambu, Nyeri, Nyandarua and Kirinyaga.
The MCAs met the DP at his Iruri home in Mathira, Nyeri County.
The 20-member committee is expected to hold its first meeting on Thursday next week for consultation with legal experts, where they will be joined by the National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Inchung’wa.
A bill for the five counties will be drafted. The bill will be subjected to public participation and County Assembly plenaries as per the procedure before adoption.
Gachagua during the meeting said the law will support the ongoing efforts to end the sale of illegal alcohol in Central Kenya, which is one of the most affected regions in the country.
He said the laws will help formulate measures that will deter the manufacturing, distillation, packaging and sale of illegal alcohol.
“If we do not intervene, we will lose an entire generation. We start the journey of saving our youth here in Central Kenya. This will be a model for the country,” Gachagua said.
The DP hosted this meeting days after meeting top National administration, security chiefs, governors, Members of the National Assembly, the Senate the Clergy, among other leaders from the Central Region in Nyeri town for a similar consultation.
Gachagua added that similar engagements will be held in Mount Kenya East counties, South Rift, Coast and Western regions for a wholesome elimination of the illicit brews and drugs.
